Working Home
by dukefan01
Summary: After graduation all the gang starts moving toward different futures. After a spark of inspiration Katsuya finds himself wanting to open a home for troubled kids. However it's not as easy as one might think. Based off a headcannon I had for Jounouchi Katsuya.
1. Idea!

Katsuya ran down the street. He was running a little late again for the tournament. He hated it when he wasn't early, since he couldn't hang out with Yugi and Mai unless he was, but he had to work a little later today at his job. It had been three years since they had all graduated high school, and things had changed quite a bit. Anzu was going to graduate from her dance school in America soon. She could have graduated earlier but had decided to get a degree at the same time in Liberal Arts. Hiroto had worked at his father's factory for a while and was now training to be his right hand man. As for Ryo, he had decided to follow his father's foot steps and become an Egyptain Archaeologist. He was currently doing a four year degree program in Egypt for Archaeology, so they didn't get to see him very often either. Shizuka was still in high school, but she was getting ready to graduate. There was talk about her possibly coming out and moving in with Katsuya until she got on her feet, something that wouldn't have been possible if he had still lived with their father. Since he took to the Professional circuit with Mai and Yugi he had been making enough in prize money to get his own apartment. He had told her she was more than welcome anytime. Then there was Ryuji. He had taken over his fathers cafe and turned it into a popular restaurant. He offered Katsuya his old job back, but Katsuya refused. He would never dress like a dog again, even if it was a request from a friend.

Instead the young man got a job at a nearby department store. It wasn't glamorous, but it made enough to help with bills and let him buy new booster packs to keep his deck updated. He was sad that he couldn't see his friends all the time like they used to. He hadn't even seen Anzu, Hiroto, or Ryo since the holidays. Mai and Yugi were at all the tournaments, but so was Seto and Mokuba. Mokuba wasn't bad and hadn't tried to kill any of them since before Death-T. Mokuba still didn't play duel monsters, but he was running Kaiba Corp well. He was on friendly terms with all of them an was never rude or disrespectful. Seto was a very different story. He barley even acknowledged them. However Katsuya figured he must have finally admitted he was a decent duelist since Seto had added him to the tournament roster's invitation lists. Even so, he always acted surprised when the blonde showed up and tried to talk him into quitting. Yugi and Mai would get angry but they wouldn't defend him, he had told them not to. He could take care of his own problems.

Katsuya decided to take a small alley that would cut off a few minutes of his travel. As soon as he turned down the narrow street he could see a group of high school kids hanging out, smoking cigarettes and laughing. He felt an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach. Is that how he really looked when he was a kid? A sad lost teen hiding out back alley's because there was no better place for him to go? He could turn and avoid the ally completely, but he decided he didn't have time for that. They were just teens after all. As he walked they seemed to notice him. One of the teens moved into the center of the alley, as if he would block Katsuya. The others looked over and put sneer's on their faces, like they were trying to be intimidating. Too bad for them that it just made them look a little pathetic to the veteran gang member.

"Hey man, why don't you leave your money and go back the way you came?" the kid in the middle asked. Katsuya ignored him. The kid did not look happy about that and decided to take a swing at the older male. Katsuya shifted to the side so the punch would miss him, then grabbed the boy's wrist as he tried to pull his fist back. The blonde stepped toward the others back, pulling his arm with him an twisting it up behind the teen. The others were against the wall in surprise as Katsuya released him with a small shove, forcing the teen to take a few steps forward.

"I'm kinda in a hurry here kid." Katsuya explained. The boy turned to look at him, and Katsuya recognized a familiar look in those eyes. The desire to fight no matter what. He hated seeing that look in others.

"You bastard! I'll teach you!" the kid snarled. He moved to come at Katsuya again, but another boy stepped between them. "What are you doing?" he snarled.

"You don't recognize him? That's Jounouchi Katusya." the new boy said. The first glared.

"So? He's just some card player." the boy said. Katsuya knew in the last few years he had been gaining a little fame. He was always in the semi-finales if not the finales of nearly every tournament he had played after all. Anyone who followed the game knew who he was at this point.

"That's not what I meant. He was known around her for a while as a gang member. You cant' beat him in a fight." the kid said. So that past had to rear it's ugly head again. His times in Hirotoani's gang were not something Katsuya had fond memories of. The boy seemed to realize the truth in that statement and moved back to let Katsuya pass. Katusya looked at each of them in turn before he continued down the alley and left.

As he headed toward the tournament, Katsuya couldn't help but think about those kids. When he was a kid his situation felt so hopeless that he needed some control of his life. So he fought. The people he fought were never the ones he was mad at, but they were easy scapegoats. He could get out his frustrations on his terms before going home and facing the hopeless situation he found himself in. Then he met Hiroto. Hiroto showed him there were other ways to go besides hanging out with a bunch of thugs who didn't care if he lived or died. He found a confident and a friend. Then he met Yugi, and learned he didn't need to rely on violence to get through everything. There were other ways to fix a problem then to just go through it.

If it hadn't been for Hiroto and Yugi, Katsuya doubted he would ever have made it out of that situation. Thanks to them he could take control of his life. He could build a life! He was able to protect his sister, he was able to secure a future for both of them, something he would never have been able to do being on the streets like he had. They helped him, reached out to him. Yet those kids were still on the street, and they weren't the only ones. How many others were in seemingly hopeless situations and had no one to reach out to them, to give them a second chance? He hoped one day someone would be able to do it, to reach out to those children and give them the second chance they needed.

Katsuya was so lost in thought he didn't realize he had arrived at the tournament site. "Jounouchi!" called Yugi and Mai as they waved at him to get his attention. the blonde grinned and waved back.

xxx

Seto sneered at the blonde, his blue eyes standing behind him. It was Seto's turn and Katusya only had one face down. It was a trap card, but one that wouldn't save him when Seto attacked with the blue eyes. He was out of options. He supposed he wouldn't make it past the semifinals this time. It was too bad, he really wanted the extra money to buy a new booster pack, but he'd have to just settle for paying his bills this time around. "You will never beat me Jounouchi, so why don't you just quit? What the hell are you even going to accomplish here anyway?" Seto asked. Katsuya glared, about the snap at him or yell, but the words hit home.

What was he accomplishing here? As a duelist right now he was securing himself a better home and a better future for his sister and himself, but what else was he doing? In the end did he really get much further than before? Anzu was chasing a dream, Ryo was trying to learn more about the past to help people, Ryuji was giving people an escape to go to when they needed a break, Hiroto was trying to improve working conditions for his father's employees, so what was he doing? He was still stationary, not moving forward. It was like the kids trapped in the alley.

Remembering the kids Katsuya wondered if anyone would notice their situation. Then something clicked together for him. Someone did notice their situation! He did! He had noticed and he had the ability to help them better than anyone. He didn't have to hope that someone would come along to help the kids. He could be that person! He not only could, but he decided he would be the one to help kids like that. Katsuya found himself actually grateful for Seto's words. That was the second time Seto had accidentally helped him when he was trying to destroy the blonde's self confidence.

"You know what Kaiba, your right. So take your best shot!" Katsuya said with a cocky grin. Mai, Yugi, and Seto all looked at the blonde in confusion. Seto wondered just what was going through his head. Meanwhile Yugi and Mai looked on in worry. Did Seto finally break him down? They felt a wave of worry for their friend, something seemed too finale about how he said that. Seto decided he didn't care what was going through the male's head.

"Suit yourself, destroy him Blue eyes!" he ordered. Katusya grinned, it wasn't the end, but the beginning to something new.

 **Hey ya'll! So here is a story about a headcanon I have. I explained the idea in a story I wrote to test it called Duel Me. If you want to read the headcanon I put it there. I hope you all like the headcanon and I will do everything I can to update this regularly. I hope you like it and tell me what you think! Obviously I have no claim to Yugioh or anything like that. If I had then the new movie would have given Katsuya a much bigger role!  
**


	2. Getting started

Katsuya took a deep breath. After the tournament Yugi and Mai had approached him, seemingly worried about how he took Seto's words. Katusya had thought about telling them the decision he made, but decided for now it would be best not to. He didn't even know if it work or not yet. He just brushed it off by telling him he was fine before going home to come up with a plan. In the end he couldn't come up with anything, so he decided to talk to some people he knew who knew both the laws and the Juvenile detention system. That's why he was currently standing outside of the Domino Police station. However he was beginning to second guess this idea. Katsuya had plenty of experience with police officers from his younger days, but they were mostly bad. Turning to leave, the young man thought of the boys in the alley again. He'd never forgive himself if he just gave upon them because he was a little uncomfortable! Turning back around Katsuya proudly marched into the building.

Most of the officers didn't give him a second glance. A few did, but it was mostly whispers of him as the famous duelist. He wondered just how many remembered him as the same middle school-er that was dragged in time and time again with Hirotani's gang. He paused to look around the various desks, finally locating a familiar face. "Hey Officer Taguchi." he greeted as he approached. The man looked up, surprise registering on his face. Officer Taguchi wasn't a young man, but nearing his sixties. He was balding and the hair he had left was grey. He was one of the two officers that brought Katsuya in most of the time, but he was also the one who fought for Katsuya to receive a finale chance before he got shipped off to Juvenile hall. It was right after that he met Hiroto and left the gang for good.

"Well well, look what the cat dragged in. You better not be in trouble, I don't have the patience to stand up for troublemakers aymore." the man sighed. Katsuya wasn't offended, his track record did suggest that he'd be here for doing something stupid.

"Nope, not this time. I wanted to talk to you. Is Arima still around?" he asked. Taguchi gave him a thoughtful look and for a second Katsuya thought the younger partner was sent to another station.

"He's here, went to get lunch. He should be back any minute. Want to sit and wait for him?" Taguchi asked, looking at the seat in front of his desk. Katsuya nodded and sat down. "How long has it been since you were last in here kid? Six years?" he asked. Katsuya smirked.

"Something like that. When I was fifteen I think." he said. Taguchi nodded.

"You've grown up." he mused. Katsuya nodded to show he had, and in many more ways than one. He wasn't a stupid kid anymore. Yugi and the others caused him to mature quite a bit. They had been through a lot of trails together, and in a short time. Katsuya didn't even want to imagine where he would be now if they hadn't come along.

Taguchi went back to his paperwork, but kept glancing up every so often. Katsuya knew he was trying to figure out why the young man was now in front of him. After all he, Taguchi, and Arima had a little bit of a history. They had been following Hirotani's gang for the three years Katsuya was in it. They both had taken Katsuya to the station many times, and through the car rides and sitting in the station they got to get to know each other rather well. They had both decided Katsuya wasn't a bad kid, that he just made bad choices. That was why they both stuck out their necks for him. All three of them had assumed that the best way for Katsuya to say thank you for that was to never end up in the station again.

"Hey Taguchi I brought you...is that Jounouchi?" Arima asked as he came over, two bags of fast food in hand. Katsuya smiled. Arima was younger, around his mid forties now. He had brown hair and was taller than his long time partner.

"The one and only." Katsuya said with a smile. Arima smiled back for a moment, but then frowned.

"Not that we aren't happy to see you Jounouchi...but why are you here?" he asked. Katsuya caught the hint of an accusation in his tone, as did Taguchi.

"He came here to talk to us. About what, I don't know." he explained. Katsuya nodded to show that he was telling the truth. Arima smiled again and sat down next to him.

"Oh, that's good. So what's up kid?" he asked. Katsuya looked down a little uneasily. He didn't know how to even begin explaining.

"I'm trying to do something, but I don't know how to even start. I was hoping the two of you might have an idea." he said. Taguchi nodded to encourage him to continue. "I want to try an get some of those kids in the middle and high school gangs off the streets." he said. The two cops looked surprised for a second. Then Taguchi laughed and Arima was smiling again. Katsuya felt his anger spike. Did they think he couldn't do it? "What's so funny?" he asked, a little aggressively. Taguchi laughed for a few more seconds before calming down.

"You really have grown up. That sounds like something you'd want to do." Arima explained. Katsuya scowled. "What's wrong?" he asked, sounding amused.

"I feel like there was an insult in there. I'm trying to find it." he said.

"Keep looking." Arima said. Taguchi laughed again.

"So how do you want to do it?" Taguchi asked. Katsuya was taken back by how he seemed to be taking him seriously.

"You...you're really going to help?" he asked. Arima snickered.

"I don't think we said we'd help you kid, he just asked a question." he teased. Katsuya's expression fell. He had gotten his hopes too high.

"It was a joke Jounouchi." Taguchi said, sounding amused that he had to explain it. Katsuya gave them both stunned looks.

"Why?" he asked. Katsuya had indeed came with the intention of trying to get their help, but he still knew most things didn't come without some strings attached. Taguchi's smile turned into something more fond, like a look a proud parent would make for their child on graduation day.

"Because you're a good kid. We've known you for a while, and you never half ass anything. If your gonna try to do something for those kids, then we're going to do it right. Besides, we'd like to see those kids taken off the streets too, so you'll actually be doing us a favor." he explained. Katsuya felt his hope welling up, they could do it.

"The main issue is no one's going to take you seriously since your only twenty years old." Arima said. Katsuya glared.

"I'm Twenty-one." he said, knowing it didn't really change anything. Neither of the officers took offense, but instead looked at each other as if they were trying to think.

"We'll find a way around that problem if we ever get that far." Taguchi said. Katsuya felt his hope start to ebb away. Maybe this was impossible until he was older. "For now the first thing we need to do is call a lawyer and see where we need to start. Jounouchi, what are you doing tomorrow?" the older officer asked the blonde. Katsuya thought for a moment.

"I get out of work around seven." he said. Taguchi nodded.

"Good, our shift ends at eight. After work tomorrow come straight here and meet us out front. I have a good friend who owes me a favor, he's a skilled lawyer and if anyone knows how to do this, he will." Katsuya nodded with a smile.

 **I'm actually having a lot of fun with this story. Oh, by the way the conversation bit from the beginning, where Katsuya is trying to 'find the insult' and the other guy tells him 'keep looking' is actually a conversation me and a coworker had when I was closing. He said something that made me think he was insulting me as a joke, and that was the resulting conversation. It was too funny not to use. Any way, so here's the beginning of the conversation with the cops. So I won't be able to upload this fast normally, but I'll do my best. I have other stories to work on too, but this one has had a special place to me for a while now, so I really wanted to get started on it. Thank you for your support amporter and xXxRen3gradeQueeN23xXx! I hope to see more of you both in the future!  
**


	3. Meeting

"Are you sure Jounouchi? We have snacks!" Yugi offered. He wanted to invite all their friends that were in the area over for a movie night. Mai, Ryuji, an Hiroto had agreed without hesitation, but Katsuya had surprisingly said he couldn't. Yugi was concerned the blonde was about to do something crazy. He looked so determined after he lost to Seto. He knew Katsuya always came running when free food was offered.

"I'd love to Yug', but I have a meeting tonight and I can't miss it." he said. Yugi frowned, Katsuya never turned down free food! Whatever it was that he was doing it really must have been important.

"I see. Next time then?" Yugi tried not to sound disappointed or make Katsuya feel guilty for turning him down, but from the sigh that followed he knew he had failed on one or both.

"Of course man! It's just this meeting is really important to me." he said. Yugi smiled and gave an affirmative noise into the receiver.

"Alright! Don't stay out too late then." he said. Katsuya chuckled on the other end before hanging up. Yugi looked around the shop. He really did want to see more of his friends. The game he was designing was nearly complete, and soon he'd be leaving for the conference in Germany. If it went over well, he could have created a brand new game like he said he would back on graduation day! Anzu and Ryo would both come back, and they would all have a game day, just like when they were still in high school! He couldn't wait to finish it.

xxx

Katsuya ran over to the police station, excited. He couldn't wait to meet who Taguchi had brought. If Taguchi hadn't given up right off the bat, then there was a chance they could do this! He came up to the police station an checked his watch. It was seven forty-five, he still had a little time. Katsuya knew sitting down would be a bad idea, that would be considered loitering and while he hadn't been on the bad side of any cops since middle school, he didn't want to start again. He found a spot on the wall he could lean against, out of immediate sight of the door.

Katsuya had been watching cars pass when the door opened and Taguchi, Arima, and a man in a black suit exited the building. They looked around and Taguchi smiled when he located Katsuya. "There you are Jounouchi." he said. The other two looked over and Arima waved with a grin. "Why don't we go somewhere nice? There's a restaurant nearby that we can talk and eat at the same time." Taguchi suggested. Katsuya looked at the ground, not wanting them to see his face as he racked through the finances he had for the month to see if he could actually afford that.

"Of course, it's my treat as well." the lawyer said. Katsuya looked up, not amused. He may be a little down on cash, but he didn't accept charity. When he took free food from his friends it was always because it would be thrown into the garbage if he didn't. The man looked at Katsuya's face and smirked, like he knew exactly what Katsuya wanted to say. "Since this sounds like it will be a regular thing, we can switch who pays the total each time." he suggested. Katsuya paused at that. If they did, he could actually save up from the next few paychecks to do that. It would work out!

Seeing that the blonde was no longer going to object, the four headed over to the mentioned place. Katsuya felt a little out of place with the three formal dressed men while he was still in his work clothes, but none of the three said a thing. "Oh Arima! You brought company today!" the hostess said when they came in. The officer smiled.

"Yeah, can we get a table for four please?" he asked. She nodded and looked at their formal atire before leading them to a secluded room. They sat down around a small table. "Can I get some tea please?" Arima asked. The woman nodded.

"Same here." Taguchi agreed.

"That sounds good." agreed the lawyer. Then all four turned to Katsuya. He looked down as he thought about the cheapest thing he could order.

"Water please." he said. From the look on all four of their faces they figured out why he ordered that.

"Just get him the same as us." the lawyer cut over. Katsuya was about to argue but the woman was already gone. Then the lawyer turned to the others. " I suppose and introduction is the best start. My name is Goto, and me and Taguchi have been friends for many years. So why don't you tell me exactly what you have in mind young Jounouchi." he prompted. Katsuya nodded.

"I want to make a place for kids who are really down on their luck to be able to go. I would have been in jail in middle school if it wasn't for my friends and these two officers. I want to give other kids a second chance to so they can make something out of their lives." Katsuya said. Goto smiled.

"I see. I heard you have a bleeding heart. When Taguchi called me last night I began looking into it. There are a lot of options here Jounouchi. If you wanted to just create a place for the kids to go to during the day it is helpful. Yet it's like a band aid. Your not curing the problem since these kids are going to have to return to the root of the problem every day." Goto said. Katsuya knew that, be he didn't know what else to do!

"What about a home?" Taguchi suggested. Katsuya looked over at him in surprise. He hadn't even thought of opening some kind of home. "Most of these kids who are steps away from prison are on the streets because of things going on at home, or not having a real home to go to. So why don't we make them one?" he suggested. Arima nodded.

"Yeah! It can be for kids a few steps away from prison, kids who have no home anymore, kids who are being removed from their homes for one reason or another, and kids who..."Arima started.

"Slow down Arima. We can expand later, for now let's deal with getting this started." Goto said. They all turned to Katsuya, waiting for his input. Katsuya realized there that he was the 'leader' of this group and the decisions he made would effect everything they did. He nodded.

"I like what Arima said." he said. The other three smiled.

"Good, now if we're going to do this there is a lot more work we're going to have to put into it. Like I aid, I can handle all the permits and paperwork, but if we only put Jounouchi as the head it will fail. He is twenty-one with a record. So he will need someone to be put on the paperwork to sponser him." Goto said. Katsuya knew that his record could come back to haunt him. If this didn't work, whoever put their name down with him would have a damaged reputation. However a hand came down on his shoulder, causing him to look up at Taguchi.

"I'll do it." he said without hesitation. Goto nodded and made a note.

"Now that that is taken care of, since this will be a non-profit organization we will need a board of directors. Of course Katsuya will be the director, an Taguchi will be his second. As someone who knows the law well Taguchi can work with me to ensure all the correct forms and red tape are taken care of for the kids to be sent to the home." Goto said. The others nodded.

The woman entered the room with their drinks, setting them down. "Can I get you anything to eat?" she asked. "Yeah, can we all get curry?" he asked. She nodded and left. The four then turned their attention back to the project at hand.

"The biggest issue first is a facility." Goto said. The four thought for a moment.

"I got it! How about the old Orphanage?" Arima suggested. Taguchi nodded.

"It's perfect. The place has been closed down for years, but it shouldn't take much to get it up and running again. It's built to accommodate this kind of thing!" he agreed. Goto made another note.

"Next is financial issues. We will need to gather sponsors and the right grants." he said. Katsuya didn't know if any of them had that skill. This could be a problem. However Goto turned a smirk to Taguchi. "What do you think Tomita is doing?" he asked. Taguchi grinned.

"Nothing, not after I call him." he said. Katsuya gave them all confused looks. Who was this Tomita?

"Tomita is a friend of Taguchi's. He is an accomplished business man." Arima explained.

"He's good at getting money for his businesses, as well as a master of budgeting and planning. If anyone can start a whole financial system from scratch and make it survive, he can." Goto elaborated.

"I'll call him when we're done. I'm sure he can help." Taguchi agreed.

"If that handles all of legal and finances, we got another problem. We won't be able to do anything without public support." Taguchi sighed. Arima suddenly sat up like he had an idea.

"I got it, Yuhara!" he said proudly. Goto and Katsuya looked confused, and Taguchi amused.

"Your girlfriend?" he asked. Arima nodded.

"She has a masters degree in both marketing and child care! She'd be perfect! She can get public support as well as make sure everyone is doing everything they can to meet the mental and physical health of all the children!" he said. The others nodded, realizing she would be perfect.

"So now we got Tomita and Yuhara." Goto said, noting that down on his paper. " I think we got enough to get started. Understand all of you, if we're actually going to do this it will require a lot of work. This isn't just going to pull together overnight. If you're still sure you want to do this, then I'll start as soon as we leave." Goto said. Taguchi, Arima, and Katsuya all smirked.

"I don't back down from any challenge." Katsuay said.

 **So there is the official meeting. Yay! I guess that's most of the boring stuff! Sorry, I really wanted to do it justice so I looked into a few different ways to start group homes and nonprofit organizations. I know I didn't do it justice, but I really did try! Now we can actually do things! More of Yugi and the gang in the next chapter!**


End file.
